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Hey All,

This week we look at the Third (3) commandment which is given to us in Exodus 20:8-11 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the sabbath day of the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or daughter, your male or female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you. This commandment is the last in which Jesus condensed down too: Matthew 22:37 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. So lets dig a little deeper at what it means to remember the sabbath.

The Third Commandment

Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. (Thou shalt sanctify the holy day.)

What Does this mean: We should fear and love God that we may not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.

What does God Want or NOT want us to do?

The Israelite’s established that one day of the week would be the sabbath. This was in the original commandments that God gave Moses but it was also exampled for us in Genesis 2:2 By the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work. Our “tradition” that is almost universally held around the world, is for that day to be on Sunday.

In a post crucified christian world does the sabbath need to be on Sunday?

We read in Romans 14:5-6 One person regards one day above another, another regards every day alike. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God. What God really wants is for us to put aside our work and focus on Him! That is to “sanctify” the holy day. Our church leaders made the sabbath on Sunday so that there would be order in worshiping on  a common day and so that business and government would recognize this day as set apart for worship.

So how can we “sanctify” a day for the Lord?

This is accomplished when we put aside anything that is unholy in our life: words, works, and daily life that does not glorify God. Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. With the time we have from putting aside work, we now have time to worship. God wants us to worship Him but not just on Sundays for an hour or two.  It says in Joshua 1:8 This book of law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.

So how do we know if we truly love God and want to  gladly hear and learn His Word or we are just attending worship for an hour on Sunday?

Now that’s a tough question but let’s take a hard look at our lives in the mirror. Can you say that over the past 12 months you have grown in your knowledge of the Word? If the answer is Yes than you are not just attending a nice spiritual gathering on Sunday for the music that is played or the entertainment it brings. You are worshiping your God and growing in His Word. If your answer is Not So Much or Not At All, God is calling us through the Holy Spirit to have a deeper relationship. Follow that prompting, pray, read the Word, join a bible study and dedicate some time to your relationship with the Father.

So to wrap up

God wants us to rest but how many people use this day to cut the grass, work on the house, or any other thing that is not focused on Him. Please understand I recognize that many in today’s workforce work on the weekend. That is why God does not limit His day of rest to Sunday. It can be anytime that works for your schedule if your employment requires you to work. Paul tells us in Galatians 6:7 The one who is taught in the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him. Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows this he will reap also. The Word of God has power and we are to share it, teach it, proclaim it and use it for worship. Like wise Jesus said in Mark 16:15 And He said to them, Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. This starts with worship on Sunday but it does not end there it needs to be in every aspect of our daily lives.

Father I pray that everyone who reads this Blog will be convicted by the Holy Spirit to seek your Word and grow in a deeper relationship with you. As we approach Resurrection Sunday, in this period of 40 days before, we focus on the sacrifice that your Son Jesus made for us, for without it we would have no hope. Let each of us exam our lives and recommit the areas that need your grace to be a disciple for you. Amen? AMEN!

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